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This is the first of two sessions offered by the Center for Neighborhood Technology as part of Transportation for America's technical assistance program. In this session, CNT trained MAP-21 subgrantees on the most effective use of the H+T Index in their advocacy for better planning at the metropolitan planning organization (MPO) and state levels. The session focused on:
How to use the "State of the Region" Fact Sheets produced by CNT, including accurate interpretation of the data and metrics.
How to talk about the H+T Index with MPO staff and other stakeholders
How coalition members might frame the data and metrics for their region and with their MPO
This training session was conducted Aug. 26 in Detroit at Wayne State University and broadcast to other subgrantees via webinar.

The history of American passenger railroading has been filled with a lot of ideas and, yes, even failed attempts. Consider the futuristic Aerotrain, Talgo, and Train X, or conventional trains like the Golden Rocket, Atlantic City Express, American European Express, Louisville Auto Train and The Aces. Ultimately they were unsuccessful and disappointments at best or in the case of the former stillborn at worst. The old adage that “timing is everything” might have a ring of truth to some of the efforts coupled with the twin challenges of finance and politics. Believing that one should not continue to hit one’s head against the wall, advocates of enhanced American intercity rail have come to accept failure, lethargy and infighting as the norm. A certain fatigue has set in, the case of the inability to resurrect a full route Sunset Limited, the Pioneer and the Montrealer comes to mind. Further insidious examples include two attempts to bring high-speed rail to Florida, and the…

Editor's Note:This excerpt from Are We There Yet? discusses the importance of quality childcare and preschools in transit-rich environments and the need for safe routes to school. Together these underscore that complete communities provide the elements that people need to thrive because they also provide the nexus where people can come together in a web of supportive relationships that enhance learning and promote an understanding and acceptance of diversity.
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Early childhood education is also identified as a key factor in setting children up for success. Quality preschools and daycare facilities in high-access locations have proven to be a real benefit to harried parents dropping kids off on their way to work. A study by Local Investment in Child Care, a California nonprofit organization, finds that locating childcare facilities within a third of a mile of transit results in high…

Research from Ohio and Washington exploring how to estimate the impact changes in the built environment may have on travel behavior and total vehicle miles traveled have been added to the Resource Center best practices database.

Richard Willson has made a name for himself in California and throughout the country as someone who knows about how parking interacts with transit and transit-oriented development (TOD). His work, along with that of Robert Cervero, has moved the needle forward and been cited in numerous county and city documents attempting to reverse the trend of over parking in urban centers and along transit corridors.

A new report by the University of Minnesota examining the perspectives of developers and business leaders on achieving transit-oriented jobs-housing balance along the Twin Cities transit network has been added to the Resource Center best practices database.

Editor's Note: School quality is only one measure of complete communities. This week's excerpt from Are We There Yet? looks at the non-school factors – neighborhood quality and safety, the availability of affordable transportation, and access to healthcare, after-school programs, open space and cultural assets, and parental involvement – that impact the opportunities of children to succeed.
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Test scores have become the most common method used to assess school quality, even though decades of social science research suggest there are other critical factors that will help determine whether a child succeeds. “The quality of schools can explain about one-third of the variation in student achievement whereas two-thirds is due to ‘non-school’ factors such as neighborhood quality and safety, the availability of affordable transportation, and access to healthcare, after-school programs,…

How did symbols of American industrial heyday become living tributes to the Cuban Revolution? A Spring 2013 article from Focus on Georgraphy exploring that topic has been added to the Resource Center database.

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The Half-Mile Circles blog is a place to share information about recent research, innovations and other issues related to TOD and livable communities. We also invite experts to talk about their work. Combined with Jeff Wood's The Other Side of the Tracks, the Half-Mile Circles blog is an opportunity for a daily dose of TOD, and allows you to weigh in with your own opinions. Usual blog rules apply; please keep the comment threads civil. To submit an expert article, contact Jeff Wood